Better Than Quidditch: The Kibbles & Bits Rewrite
by CitiKitti
Summary: Discovering love & life, Marauder-style. WIP.
1. Default Chapter

**Better Than Quidditch:**

**The Kibbles & Bits Rewrite**

Disclaimer: These characters are not mine, but belong to JK Rowling, the lucky girl! So, obviously I make no money from this... but, my goodness, it's fun.

A/N: Yes, yes, I did previously write a version of this story, but after I posted it, I realized it was only a shadow of what I'd meant the story to be. That's what I get, I suppose, for writing it in a hurry. Please, please, pretty please – R/R!! Reviews are my oxygen!!

**FIRST YEAR **

The first time eleven-year-old James Potter mounted a school broomstick, he immediately fell off it, and his best friend Sirius Black nearly laughed himself sick.

"Good thing you weren't trying out for Quidditch, mate!" Sirius gasped, tears of mirth streaming from his eyes. James, pretending to ignore him, pulled out his wand and muttered _reparo!_ at his cracked glasses.

"Hey," said Sirius, after he calmed down. "Can you do that again?"

James threw himself at the other boy with an indignant yell. "I bloody well will not!" he shouted, pummeling Sirius who simply burst out laughing again.

A shrill whistle interrupted them. "Boys!" said Madam Hooch, exasperated. "Kindly constrain yourselves before I'm forced to dock House points."

Sirius and James awkwardly pulled each other up. "Yes, ma'am," they chorused. Sirius was still giggling.

"Hmph," Madam Hooch sniffed. "Let's try again, shall we?"

James Potter, black hair awry and grass stains dotting his school robes, mounted his allotted broomstick again and took off quite gracefully.

"Bloody show-off," Sirius muttered under his breath as he fell off his own broom.

They were four that year in the Gryffindor boys' dorm, four eleven-year-old First Years who were contemplating their upcoming seven years of magical education with varying degrees of apprehension and anticipation.

Sirius threw himself full-length across his bed, absently brushing a thick lock of black hair out of his eyes as he did so. Rolling over onto his side, he happily surveyed the room and its occupants. "Bloody amazing," he murmured, half to himself. Slightly louder, he said, "Oi! Potter! What're you grousing about?"

James glanced up from where he was stretched out across his own bed. "I want a broom," he said moodily, ruffling a hand through his already messy black hair.

"First Years aren't allowed their own brooms," said Remus Lupin from across the room. "You know that." Thin and pale, he gave off a perpetual aura of slight weariness, though Sirius suspected the boy wasn't nearly as delicate and fragile as he appeared.

"Still want one," mumbled James.

Remus sat carefully at the edge of his own neatly-made bed, toying idly with the edges of his school robes. They were already a few weeks into classes, but Remus still couldn't believe he was actually here – _here!_ – at Hogwarts, when he'd never expected to have been allowed to attend in the first place. And then, unbelievably, to have been Sorted into Gryffindor! Gryffindors were noted for their bravery and daring; Remus didn't feel particularly brave. Rather, he felt nervous and wary. He cast a sideways glance at the fourth member of their dorm, a shortish boy with pale eyes and mouse-coloured hair.

Peter Pettigrew looked – and felt – downright miserable. He, too, was astounded at the results of his Sorting. He'd already known he wasn't nearly smart enough for Ravenclaw, or cunning enough for Slytherin – not that he'd _wanted_ to be in Slytherin! – but Peter had been fairly sure he'd have been put into Hufflepuff. Hufflepuff, he'd heard, would take just about anyone.

"Knut for your thoughts, Peter?" Remus asked, smiling kindly at him.

Peter sighed. "D'you suppose the Sorting Hat ever makes mistakes?" he ventured.

"Not a bit," James piped up confidently. "My family's all been Gryffindors. Got me right in one."

Sirius snorted. "What's that say about me, then?" he said. "My family's all been Slytherin – well, mostly. I think there's been the odd Ravenclaw – we don't talk about them much -- but I'm sure I'm the first Gryffindor."

"Slytherin?" said Peter. "Really? Why aren't you?"

"Dunno," said Sirius, hauling himself up into a sitting position. "Don't care, really. Actually, I don't much like most of my family," he added.

Remus stared at him. "Are they all Dark wizards? I've heard the Slytherins all come out Dark."

"Mostly." Sirius grimaced and added, "It's a bit creepy, you know."

Peter asked, "D'you think the Hat misplaced you?"

"Nope," said Sirius, and grinned. "My family's a miserable lot, always acting like they're better than anyone else. Why would I want to be like that?"

"I think I was supposed to be in Hufflepuff," said Peter morosely. "I'm not brave."

"Peter," Remus said gently. "We're eleven. I don't think anyone expects us to be brave yet."

"James, d'you know you've spread jam on the same piece of toast three times already?" Remus asked at breakfast one morning in the Great Hall.

"Huh?" Startled, James looked down at his toast. Indeed the layer of jam _was_ rather thick. "Must've been distracted."

"I wouldn't have mentioned it," Remus added, "but it's actually _my _toast."

"Sorry," said James, holding it out. "Here you go."

Remus eyed the jam-laden bit of toast dubiously. "It's alright," he said. "You keep it."

"Who're you ogling?" Sirius asked, twisting in his seat to follow James' gaze as Peter snuck his hand in to filch the toast.

"Evans," James said, a bit dreamily.

"Evan who?" Sirius craned his neck a bit more, eyes roving over the tables. "What House? And _why_?"

"Not Evan," James explained patiently. "_Lily_ Evans. Gryffindor. A First Year, like us. You must have seen her in classes."

Sirius shot him an odd look that plainly said James was nothing but a lovesick git. "James, you're a lovesick git," he said conversationally, as James was far too busy Lily-gazing to catch meaningful looks from a dorm-mate. He turned back to his breakfast, poking his eggs suspiciously with his knife.

Remus snorted. "Don't worry," he said, as Sirius glanced over at him. "They didn't touch anything else on the plate."

"Are you absolutely _sure_?" asked Sirius, frowning at Remus' bemused expression.

"Yes," Remus affirmed. "No, really," he added, as Sirius' frown deepened. "I was watching them."

"You were watching my breakfast?"

_No, you git_, Remus thought. _I was watching you, but d'you think I'm going to admit that?_ Besides, to the best of Remus' knowledge, boys weren't supposed to Notice Other Boys -- even if the other boy in question had hair like black silk, and eyes like the sea after a storm, and...

"Remus? Why are you watching me eat?"

Remus, flushing briefly, shook himself back to reality and picked up his pumpkin juice. This was going to be a long, long year.


	2. Second Year

SECOND YEAR 

Strangely, it was Peter who saw the notice first. He flung himself down at the breakfast table, breathless and grinning, and said, "Quidditch tryouts start next week."

Sirius gaped at him, speechless for once. James, who (much to Remus' disgust) was in the midst of coating his eggs with syrup, stopped pouring long enough to squeak, "Really?"

Peter nodded excitedly. "There was a notice in the Gryffindor common room. Frank Longbottom just put it up." He paused to drink from the glass of pumpkin juice that Sirius had just passed to him. "I suppose you're trying out?"

"Of course we are!" said James. He began to shovel syrupy eggs into his mouth with shocking alacrity.

Remus had to look away. He took a nibble of his toast and tried not to think about what James was eating. Glancing across the table at Sirius, he breathed a small sigh of relief. Sirius didn't even like his food to _touch_; he wasn't about to drown it in syrup.

"What about you, Remus?" Sirius asked around a mouthful of half-chewed bacon, the sight of which, Remus reflected, wasn't much better than James' eggs.

"No," he said. "I, um. Well, there's that Potions essay due..."

"Next week!" said Sirius. "A whole six more days away!"

"Well," Remus said, somewhat peevishly, "I don't want to leave it till the last minute."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Keep _that_ attitude up, and someone's bound to make you a _Prefect_."

The common-room fire was making him drowsy, but Sirius was too comfortable to go up to bed. James and Peter had both left an hour ago, while Remus was still writing his Potions essay. He'd only just finished.

"You should go on up to bed," Remus said. "If you fall asleep in that chair, I'm not carrying you upstairs."

Sirius yawned. "Well, I couldn't leave you alone down here."

"Why not?" asked Remus. "What was I going to do, stab myself with a quill? Get attacked by rogue parchment?"

"It could happen," said Sirius. "You never know." He tried picturing Remus being attacked by his essay and managed to keep a straight face for exactly three seconds before bursting into bark-like laughter.

Remus waited patiently for him to calm down, trying not to notice the way the firelight played across Sirius' shaggy hair, throwing bluish highlights into the black. Instead he busied himself with rolling up his parchment. He told himself that the strange tingly effect was not due to the proximity of Sirius Black, but to sheer exhaustion.

"Remus?"

"Yes?"

Sirius chewed on his bottom lip for a moment, then asked, "D'you fancy someone?"

Remus, trying not to hyperventilate, choked and shook his head. "No," he finally managed.

"Well," Sirius continued, "suppose you did. How would you go about getting them to notice you?" He watched as Remus brushed his fringe out of his eyes with slender, ink-stained fingers. The longer length really did suit him better, Sirius decided, and he hoped Remus would keep it that way.

"Are you sure you should be asking me?" said Remus. "Maybe you should ask James. He's always trying to get Lily Evans interested." He chewed on the end of his quill and added, "Who is it?"

"Um." Sirius debated for a moment. "It's more of a hypothetical question, actually."

Remus yawned, picking up his books and parchment, and headed towards the stairs. "It's late. You should get some sleep."

"You go on," Sirius said, waving him off. "I'll be up in a few minutes." He was acutely aware of the boy's level gaze on him. Remus shrugged and headed up to the dorm. Sirius watched him go, and wondered why his dreams had to be haunted by tawny hair and amber eyes.

"I can't believe we both made the team!" Sirius crowed, exuberantly throwing himself across his bed.

James snickered. "I can't believe _you_ made the team," he said, expertly ducking the pillow Sirius immediately threw at him. "What was that move, anyway?"

"It was a classic Sloth Grip Roll," Sirius said, with an injured tone. "If you actually knew anything about Quidditch, you'd know _that_."

"I know enough about Quidditch to know you're just covering up for nearly falling off your broom," James said. "Oi!" Sirius had found a packet of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans in his nightstand and had begun flicking them at James.

The door edged open, and Remus stepped gingerly around it, barely able to see around the stack of books he was carrying.

"What the bloody hell's _that_?" asked Sirius in disbelief. "A little light reading?"

Remus placed the books atop his school trunk, ignoring Sirius' comment, and pushed his hair out of his face. His fringe was really getting much too long, but he couldn't be bothered to trim it. "Well?" he asked. "How were they, Peter?"

"Brilliant," Peter said loyally, positively glowing with a mixed expression of envy and admiration. "Gryffindor's sure to have the best team now."

"James?"

James puffed his chest out a little and said, "I made Seeker!"

"Congratulations," Remus said, and he sincerely meant it. "Sirius? How'd you do?"

"Beater," Sirius proudly proclaimed.

Remus smiled. "Somehow that doesn't surprise me in the least. Did you try out too, Peter?"

"No," Peter said, with a small shake of his head.

"Pettigrew's not much on flying," Sirius said around a mouthful of chocolate. He'd found some slightly stale Chocolate Frogs in the bottom of his bookbag and was magnanimously passing them around. Remus took one dubiously.

"I don't like being that far off the ground," Peter admitted, as he accepted a Frog from Sirius. "I'd rather watch Quidditch than play it."

James and Sirius stared at him, unable to fathom how someone could _not_ want to play the most widely popular and exciting wizarding sport. "_Nothing_," James said emphatically, "is better than Quidditch."

"Nothing," Sirius echoed solemnly. "So, who's coming to watch our first practice tomorrow?"

"Can't," said Remus. "I've got to go home for the weekend."

James narrowed his eyes. "Your mum's not sick again, is she?"

Remus shrugged. "Well," he said softly, "it really can't be helped."

"You go every month," said Sirius. "Can't you beg off just once?"

"No," said Remus. He gave Sirius a strange look. "Definitely not an option." He picked a clean set of robes off his bed and headed off towards the shower.

As soon as Remus had left the room, James poked Sirius with his wand. "That was incredibly insensitive, y'know," James said, "even for you. Unlike you, some people actually _like_ their families."

Sirius stared thoughtfully at the closed door.

"Did either of you do the Astronomy homework yet?" Peter piped up. "Only I can't make this lunar chart come out right."

James sidled over to Peter's bed and sprawled across the foot of it. "Let me see," he said, taking the chart from the smaller boy. "No, this is wrong here. It's not coming out right because you've got the phases of the moon backwards." He pointed at the chart. "Here, see, and here. Anyway, it's a full moon this weekend, not a new one. Change that and you should get it working."

"Thanks," Peter said gratefully, taking back the chart and scribbling in the changes with his quill.

"James..." Sirius said in a slightly strangled voice. "Are you sure about that?"

They stared at each other. _Your mum's not sick again, is she? You go every month._

"Oh," James said softly.

"_Oh,_" said Sirius.

They watched Remus enter the Great Hall, stepping gingerly towards the Gryffindor table. The limp was barely noticeable, but that might have been due to the considerable distraction caused by the angry red welt across one cheekbone.

"Quit staring," Remus muttered, gritting his teeth as he eased himself into a seat.

"Have a run-in with the Whomping Willow, did you?" James asked casually.

"Something like that," Remus said. He sipped slowly at his pumpkin juice.

"We know," Sirius said suddenly.

Remus put down his glass. "Know what?" he asked carefully, not daring to meet their eyes.

"Where you were this weekend," Sirius whispered, leaning close enough to Remus' ear for his breath to feather the other boy's tawny hair.

Remus, already pale, turned utterly white.

Sirius sat back and added, "We're still your friends, you know. This doesn't change that. It doesn't change anything."

"But," James said, sounding slightly hurt, "you could have trusted us."

"Remus?" asked Peter. "Are you alright?"

But Remus never heard him; he'd already fainted.

"What happened?" he asked, groggily opening his eyes. Everything still ached horribly.

"You fainted, mate," said James, perched on the edge of the hospital bed.

"So," Remus said weakly. "You figured it out."

James nodded. "Yeah."

"And it doesn't bother you?"

James shook his head. "Was it supposed to?" he asked. He slid sideways on the bed until he was leaning against Remus' shoulder. "We'll always be there for you, you know. That's what friends do," he added softly.

Remus gave a bitter laugh. "I wouldn't know, actually," he said. "I never had any friends before coming to Hogwarts, not real ones."

"Really?"

"Well..." Remus gestured vaguely at himself. "On account of ... things. You get used to it."

"Do you?"

Remus thought, then shook his head. "No," he said truthfully. "You don't. I don't. Where's Sirius and Peter?

"Herbology. D'you want me to go to?"

"No," said Remus, suddenly terrified that he was about to start crying in front of James. "Stay. Please."

"Shove over a bit, then," said James, and Remus did, pillowing his head on James' chest, immeasurably grateful for simple things like friendship.

"James... I..." Remus began, looking up right when James happened to look down, but the words were cut off by the sudden unexpected pressure of James' lips against his own.

As kisses go, it was terribly awkward, with noses bumping and James' glasses sliding down his nose, not to mention the belated realization that they were both boys and therefore probably shouldn't be kissing at all, especially not in the Hogwarts hospital wing.

"Sorry," James whispered, as they broke apart.

"Don't be," Remus whispered back. They stared wide-eyed at each other a moment, then James rose and gathered his books.

"I just wanted to reassure you," James blurted out. "Nothing's changed because of the werewolf thing. Just so you know." He turned and hurried out of the room.

Remus touched his lips and wondered if he would ever get used to his friends.


	3. Third Year

THIRD YEAR 

For a multitude of reasons, James Potter and Sirius Black were no longer allowed to work together in a Potions class.

"Potter, you're with Lupin," growled their moody Potions professor. "Black, you're with... Let me see... Evans. And Pettigrew," he added, almost as an afterthought, "you're with Snape."

Peter blanched and moaned, "Why me? Why _me_?" Morosely he picked up his books and cauldron, and headed over towards the sallow-faced Slytherin boy, who looked none too pleased with the pairing himself.

"I get Evans, I get Evans," Sirius chanted, rubbing his hands together gleefully. He leered at James and said, "My, she _has _filled out nicely since First Year, hasn't she?"

James, who was immediately and forcibly restrained by Remus, was reduced to glowering at Sirius from over his cauldron.

"Oi! Evans!" Sirius yelled over the noise and clatter of students rearranging themselves in pairs around the classroom. "I hope you're better at this than I am!" Giving her what he rightfully assumed to be his most charming smile, he plopped his books down next to hers on the table.

Lily sighed, tugging absently on a lock of her long auburn hair. "You'd be fine if you'd only pay attention," she said. "And try to not burn a hole in my shoe this time."

"That was an _accident_," Sirius protested, as Lily began slicing up their allotted Flobberworm. "I could do that, you know," he offered.

"No, thank you," she said primly, slapping his hand away none too gently. "I'd like to pass. You take notes." She shot him a scathing _Or else!_ look.

Sirius took notes.

_She is cute,_ he thought, eyeing her surreptitiously as she carefully measured out and added ingredients to the potion. Pointedly ignoring James' threatening gestures from the next table, Sirius glanced down at Lily's neat pile of books, which included copies of _1001 Charms and Hexes for the Precocious Witch_ and Tolkien's _The Two Towers._ Nothing was dog-eared or fingerprint-smudged.

_Sweet Merlin, it's a female Remus!_

He looked back over at his friends. Remus was utterly hopeless at Potions, and James looked about to cry over the foul-smelling orange sludge seeping sluggishly out of their cauldron.

Smiling broadly at Lily, Sirius put down his quill and peeped into their own potion. It was a clear, shimmering ice-blue, precisely as it should be, and gave off only the faintest odour of buttered toast.

"Don't touch _anything_," Lily warned. "It has to simmer for the next twelve minutes."

_I can see why James likes her,_ Sirius thought idly. He watched Lily gently stir the potion, brow furrowed in concentration. _Wonder if he'd notice if I just..._ He grinned as the idea took hold.

"Hey, Evans?" he said innocently. "Come here."

"What?" Lily asked absently, stepping marginally closer.

"Oh, nothing," Sirius said. He winked over his shoulder at James, who was looking utterly homicidal, and then leaned over to quickly kiss Lily on the lips.

He woke up in the hospital wing twenty minutes later, his cheek still smarting from Lily's outraged slap, and wondering just what James had hexed him with to make his mouth hurt so bloody much.

"It wasn't a hex," Remus explained, handing Sirius a fresh ice pack. "He just punched you."

"_Ow_," said Sirius.

"Don't worry," Remus added hastily. "Madam Pomfrey already fixed the tooth he knocked out."

James pounced on him the second Sirius walked back into the dorm.

"What were you doing?" he yelled. "You _know_ I like her."

"Oh, please," said Sirius. "It's not like she enjoyed it or anything."

Remus warned, "You're not helping your case here, Sirius."

"Well," Sirius complained, "he didn't have to hit me."

"I'd do it again in a minute," growled James.

"So would I," Sirius said wickedly, and deftly sidestepped as James charged at him with a yell.

"Where's Peter, anyway?" Remus asked, as Sirius helped James off the floor.

James snickered. "Detention. After you... left... his and Snape's potion just sort of _erupted_. Like a volcano."

"And I missed it?" chuckled Sirius.

"Ol' Snivellus thought we'd goaded Peter into doing it on purpose," added James.

"It almost makes you feel sorry for Severus," Remus said thoughtfully.

James and Sirius stared at him.

"I said _almost_," Remus amended.

"Wake up!" Sirius hissed, shaking Remus by the shoulders for the fourth time.

Remus awoke all at once, and sat bolt upright. He nearly screamed until he realized the person gripping his upper arm was not in fact part of his nightmare, but only Sirius, perched on the edge of Remus' bed.

"Guh," Remus mumbled, blinking back sleep. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to wake you." He suddenly realized that his bed curtains were still faintly limned with the glow of a well-placed Silencing charm. "How'd you hear me?"

"Um," said Sirius. He toyed awkwardly at the cuff of his pyjama pants before answering. "You must've been really tired. You – ah – forgot to do this side of the bed." He gestured vaguely towards his own bed.

Remus flushed, but in the dim light it was barely noticeable. He was used to nightmares; he'd suffered them frequently since receiving the werewolf bite at the tender age of six, but hadn't told anyone.

"D'you always yell like that?" Sirius asked curiously.

Remus shook his head. "No. But often enough. Did I..."

"No," Sirius assured him. "You didn't wake James or Peter."

"I woke _you_," Remus said flatly.

Sirius waved him off. "I was awake anyway," he lied. He looked closely at Remus and added, "You're bloody _shaking_. Push over a bit."

Remus edged over, throwing back the blankets so that Sirius could crawl under them.

"My little brother – you know, Regulus – used to get nightmares all the time," Sirius said as he tucked the blankets in around them. "He could never go back to sleep unless someone was there."

Up close, Sirius smelled like soap and toothpaste, and some unidentifiable scent Remus could only define as just-Sirius. Reflexively he arranged himself alongside Sirius, already beginning to drop back to sleep.

"He'll be starting at Hogwarts next year," Sirius continued, one arm slung idly around Remus' shoulders. Remus yawned widely, nestling closer as he tried to pay attention. "I bet he'll be in Slytherin too... Always told him he was too tense."

Remus mumbled into Sirius' shoulder.

Sirius poked him and said, "_You're _too tense, Remus. We're going to have to do something about that."

"Like what?" Remus yawned. But if Sirius answered, Remus never heard it. He was fast asleep.

Remus pulled his cloak more tightly around himself. He wasn't cold, not exactly, but he thought if he _seemed_ cold, Sirius might change his mind.

Sirius wasn't biting. "Come on," he invited, patting the broomstick. "Up you get. It's got cushioning charms and everything."

Remus eyed his friend doubtfully. "Sirius, it's alright. I really want to read up on next week's assignments, and..."

"Get on the sodding broom," Sirius growled, his eyes blazing, "before I hex you into next bloody week."

Sighing, Remus carefully mounted the broomstick behind Sirius.

"Put your arms 'round my waist," Sirius instructed. "_Ow_ – not so tight!"

"Sorry," Remus said sheepishly. He loosened his grip slightly, leaning into Sirius' back as they took off.

It was a beautiful evening. A half-moon shone in the clear, star-filled sky. The early spring air was crisp yet not so cold as to be uncomfortable – although Remus was glad he was dressed warmly under his cloak, as it was far cooler above the treetops than down on the ground.

Sirius took them lower, barely skimming the surface of the Hogwarts lake, relishing in the clear, bright night and the feel of wind in his face. Remus' grip had tightened again around his waist, but Sirius found he didn't mind it, not at all. He glanced down at their reflection mirrored in the rippling lake. Remus' cheek was pressed to Sirius' shoulder, tawny hair blowing back from his face, and his eyes were tightly shut.

Suppressing a grin, Sirius brought them down on the far side of the lake. "Open your eyes," he chided gently. "You're supposed to be _enjoying_ this."

Remus cautiously opened his eyes. "I don't think," he said dryly, "that had the desired effect of making me relax." He looked around them, slowly realizing where they were. "Sirius," he began.

"I come here all the time," Sirius assured him. "It's still on Hogwarts grounds, don't worry."

"I wasn't worried," Remus said.

Sirius laughed. "You _always_ worry," he said. "It's part of your charm." He glanced sideways at Remus. The way the other boy's hair shone in the moonlight made something tighten strangely in Sirius' chest. Remus' amber eyes were luminous in the half-light, and Sirius suddenly realized there wasn't really anywhere else he wanted to be.

He flopped down on the cold ground, motioning for Remus to join him. "There's my star," Sirius said, pointing out where the Dog Star shone in the sky thousands upon thousands of light years away. "I used to think that it was named for me, not the other way around. That's the traditional Black family arrogance for you." He laughed harshly.

Remus sat down next to him. "You aren't your family, Sirius," he said gently. Sirius said nothing, but closed his eyes, breathing the cool air in deeply. Remus watched the rhythmic rise and fall of Sirius' chest, reflecting how odd yet how natural it was that this wild, impulsive, impossible boy could have such moments of peace buried within him.

The breeze blew a stray leaf into Sirius' shaggy black hair and, unthinkingly, Remus reached out to brush it away.

As his hand touched Sirius' head, the grey eyes snapped open, gazing interminably into amber ones.

"You had a leaf," Remus said, handing it to Sirius as proof.

Clearing his throat, Sirius sat up and said, "You were right. It's late. Let's go back." He was still clutching the leaf.

As the broomstick rose into the sky, Remus grinned and tightened his grip around Sirius' waist. He kept his eyes open all the way back to the castle.

... to be continued ...


	4. Fourth Year

**FOURTH YEAR**

"Excellent match!" Sirius exclaimed for approximately the twentieth time in as many minutes. "I can't believe we beat Slytherin by nearly three hundred points!" He briskly rubbed a towel over his shower-damp hair.

"Well, half that was the Snitch," James reminded him. "D'you think Lily noticed the spectacular dive I made?"

Sirius shook his head, throwing aside the towel and running his hands through his damp hair. "Doubt it," he said. "Come on; I'm starving."

"Merlin, let a bloke get dressed first!" James complained, tugging on his clothes. "Anyway, you being starving isn't exactly news."

Remus met up with them just outside the Great Hall.

"You and Peter were at the match, weren't you?" James demanded.

Remus shook his head. "Peter's gone to Hogsmeade again with Cassandra, and I was helping Lily with that make-up assignment for Transfiguration from when she had the flu last week," he said apologetically.

James looked crestfallen. He muttered something about not being hungry after all and stomped off towards the Gryffindor dormitories.

"What's the matter with James?" Remus wondered.

Sirius snickered. "He nearly broke his neck catching the Snitch and nobody noticed."

"And by 'nobody' I take it you mean Lily?" said Remus, pushing back a pang of guilt. He'd been trying very hard to avoid Lily for the last few months without it being obvious that he was doing so.

"Who else?" said Sirius. "Come on with me to the kitchens. I'm starving."

He hadn't _wanted_ to like her, Remus reflected, not when James spent every waking moment either watching her, or extolling her virtues in some manner, or declaring his undying love for her.

But then Remus would bump into Lily Evans somewhere innocuous, like the Hogwarts Library or the hall outside the Charms classroom, and Lily would give him that slow, sweet smile that lit up her jade-green eyes and made Remus' heart skip a beat. It was the kind of smile that hinted at volumes of secrets kept.

Sometimes Remus wondered what Lily would think of _his_ secret, of his being a werewolf, but mostly he wondered if her lips tasted as sweet as they looked.

_James would kill me,_ he thought grimly, watching Lily brush her auburn hair back with one hand while she patiently took notes in History of Magic. _Twice._

Once, memorably, he'd bumped into her – quite literally – just outside the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade Village, scattering packages across the frozen ground. As Remus, mortified, hurried to retrieve them for her, Lily breezily said she'd not seen him either and offered to buy him a butterbeer.

As luck would have it, they both been alone. Lily's circle of friends had decided against visiting Hogsmeade on such a wintry day, whereas James and Sirius had a badly-needed Quidditch practice, and Peter was off somewhere with a fourth-year Hufflepuff with the ungainly yet oddly charming name of Cassandra Feathergood.

The Three Broomsticks was packed, and they were forced to sit squeezed together a tiny back table, so close that their knees touched. Lily chattered quite happily about their recent Charms essay (she'd been graded an E on it), a book on magical creatures she'd seen in Flourish & Blotts, and the fact that there'd been very little snow for such a cold winter.

Their knees bumped again under the table.

"Sorry," said Remus, trying very hard not to turn scarlet.

Lily waved him off. "S'ok. Tight fit in here, isn't it?"

Remus nodded and drained the rest of his butterbeer. "Getting late, I think. We should probably be heading back to school," he said. She nodded in agreement and began to gather up her things.

Outside, the air had turned even chillier, and the charcoal-grey clouds gathering overhead promised snow.

Lily stepped closer. "Thanks," she said warmly, "for keeping me company." She meant to kiss him chastely on the cheek, but Remus had turned to say something to her. Lily's lips ghosted across his so softly that for a brief moment Remus thought he'd imagined it.

"Um," she said, jade eyes wide.

Remus didn't give her a chance to apologize. Emboldened by sheer (and uncharacteristic) abandon, he kissed her again, delighted to find that her soft lips really did taste as sweet as he'd thought. She kissed him back, one hand stealing up to wind into his tawny hair, her mouth falling slightly open under his.

Remus closed his eyes, reveling in the first tentative touch of their tongues. His breath quickened as the kiss deepened, and unthinkingly he murmured a word against her lips.

Lily pushed him slightly away. "I beg your pardon?" she asked.

Remus blinked. "What?" he said. Lily was staring at him with a mixture of amusement and embarrassment. Self-consciously he reached up to smooth his mussed hair. "What?" he repeated.

"You. Just. CalledmeSirius," Lily said, a very flattering blush staining her cheeks pink, although she looked anything but flattered.

There really was nothing he could say to that, Remus realized, blushing furiously himself, and "sorry" didn't even begin to cover it.

"It's alright," Lily said quickly. "I thought as much anyway."

And there was nothing Remus could say to _that_, either.

As they headed back to the castle, it began, finally, to snow. Soft, fat flakes fell on their bare heads, the flurries getting gradually heavier and heavier. By the time they reached Hogwarts, the snow on the ground was nearly an inch deep.

"See you," Lily said, smiling warmly at him as she headed indoors. Remus glanced toward the Quidditch pitch where two very familiar figures were throwing handfuls of snow at each other.

"Yeah," said Remus belatedly. "See you later." But Lily had already gone. He turned up the collar of his thin coat and headed toward his friends.

Later that evening in the dorm, Remus sat on his bed, listening patiently as Peter enthused about Cassandra Feathergood. From the sound of it, Peter was completely smitten.

Remus leaned back against his headboard, casting a quick glance over at Sirius. Sirius' dark hair was still damp with snow (James had charmed his and Sirius' snowballs to attack only Sirius) and he was yawning. He noticed Remus' glance and winked at him.

"Have a good time in Hogsmeade?" Sirius asked.

_Not without you_, Remus nearly said. He caught himself in time to say, "It was alright." Sirius seemed satisfied with this and gave him a rare smile instead of his cheeky trademark grin.

Remus suddenly realized why he'd said Sirius' name into Lily's mouth. Apparently Peter wasn't the only one who was smitten.

It wasn't late, but Lily had already gone up to bed, muttering huffily under her breath about bloody mannerless gits who were never going to get dates if they didn't smarten up.

"Think she was talking about us?" James asked, peering wistfully after her.

"You, at least," said Sirius, stretching out on his stomach, cat-like, before the common-room fire. "I've had plenty of dates."

"So have I," James argued, "but none of them are Lily."

Sirius shrugged. "Have you asked her?"

"Of _course_ I've asked her! I ask her every bloody day!" James said, exasperated.

"Oh," said Sirius. He thought for a moment. "Have you tried asking her _nicely_?"

James turned the idea over in his mind. "That's almost crazy enough to work, Sirius..." he said thoughtfully.

Sirius snorted, rolling onto his back. "And people say _I'm_ the insensitive one!"

James slid down to the floor, sitting with his back against the couch. He stretched his legs over top of Sirius'.

"You make a pretty good cushion," James said.

Sirius poked him with a finger. "Sod off," he said, but didn't ask James to move. Instead he began lightly tracing circles with his fingers over James' hipbone, occasionally flicking them up James' side until the other boy began giggling helplessly.

"Quit it, Sirius!" James laughed.

"Ticklish, are we?" murmured Sirius. He twisted suddenly, lithely flipping James onto his back and attacking with both hands while James shouted in laughter. "I should tell Lily you're this ticklish. Birds go for that, y'know."

"They do?" James gasped, trying to squirm out of Sirius' grasp.

Sirius suddenly relinquished his grip, staring quizzically at James. "How d'you not know that?" he demanded. "Thought you said you'd had plenty of dates."

"I have," James hissed, dropping his voice to a whisper although they were alone in the common room. "I... We... It's just..."

"James, have you ever even kissed a girl?"

James blushed fiercely. "Of course I have!"

Sirius cocked an eyebrow at him.

"Bloody hell... Alright, no," James admitted, "and don't you dare tell a soul. What's 'properly' s'posed to mean, anyway?"

"Um," said Sirius, quickly scanning the empty common room for any hidden occupants. "A bit like this, actually." He ducked forward, planting his mouth squarely on James'.

James' lips parted slightly, and Sirius dipped his tongue delicately between them. James moaned softly, snaking his hands up into Sirius' hair, tangling his fingers in to draw Sirius closer.

After several minutes, they broke apart, both rather flushed and breathless.

"So," said Sirius. "Yeah. You just... And Lily... She'll like that. Yeah. Trust me; you'll do fine."

"Not so different from when I kissed Remus, then," said James, extricating himself from Sirius' arms and backing towards the stairs. "Look at the time... No wonder I'm so tired." He faked a yawn and headed quickly up to the fourth-year dorm.

"Be up soon," Sirius called after him, stretching out in front of the fire again. He was almost too comfortable to move. Then he realized what James had said.

"Wait a second!" Sirius roared, scrambling to his feet and tearing after James. "When did you kiss _Remus_?"


End file.
